Power transmitting means



March ,1946. G.=R. PENNINGTON 2,397,368

POWER TRANSMITTING MEANS v I Filed April 17, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR 'arazr Ki ali/13 01 ATTORNEY-5.

March 1946- G. R. PENNINGTON 2,397,368

- POWER TRANSMITTING MEANS Filed April 17, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 T A 9/. I

INVENTOR 'araorz 7i. 7%21222'225 Z ra BY k I ATTORNEYS.

Patented Mar. 26, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE rowan TRANSMITTING means 7 Gordon R. Pennington, Bloomfield nmo, Mich assignor to Chrysler Corporation, Highland Park, Mich, a corporation of Delaware 1 Application April m re, Serial no. senses 9 Claims. (01. lee-3.2)

This invention relates to a power-transmitting means. It relates more particularly to a device of the type by which power is transmitted through It is desirable to employ a speed-responsive clutch with a fluid coupling so that a vehicle employing the fluid coupling between the engine and certain driven parts will not tend to creep at low or idling speeds of the engine. It is known to employ a speed-responsive coupling with the ordinary simple two-part fluid coupling. -According to the present invention, a speed-respon- Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line'2--2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 38 of Fig. 1: v

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken .on the line 4-4 own. 1;

Fig. 5 is a sectional View taken on the line l5 of Fig. 1; and a Fig. 6 is an elevational view partially in section showing the power-transmittins'means of the present invention connected to a changespeed transmission. I

One end of an engine crankshaft lllis secured by screws II and nuts l2, only one of each being shown, to a fitting. 13. The fitting I3 is secured 'by soldering or welding to a casing part it forming part of a casing II of which the remaining parts are a ring I 8 and a casing part ll. The ring I6 is secured as by soldering or welding to go the casing parts It and I1 and maintains them mechanical advantage derived through the runner driving the shaft at the relatively low rate of speed. Also according to the present invention, there is employed an overrunning clutch in bypassing relation ,to the speed-responsive clutch so that the engine may be started by movement of the vehicle. I I

Insofar as the hydraulic means involving the impeller and a plurality of runners are concerned,

forming part 'of a speed-responsive clutch 22.

I! and an inwardly'extending radial flange 20, to which is secured a channelled annulus 2| The clutch 22 further comprises a channelled annulus 23 having a thickened portion 24, spaced weights 2!, a ring 28, and a clutch disc 21 pro- ,vided with clutch facings .28 and 28 secured there- 80 to by rivets 30. The channelled annuli 2| and there is a considerable problem in alignment of theparts. Connected to the impeller and the plurality of runners for driving purposes may be a plurality of closely associated elements such as a shaft and sleeves. The association of these elements with one another and the supporting of them in bearings form part of the present invention.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improvement in a hydraulic power-transmitting means. This means may be a hydraulic transmission involving a plurality of runners opspaced from oneanother and are spaced also 23 are secured to one another by bolts ti and nuts 32 and secured between them a ring 33 having a splined portion at to which the ring 2s 1s keyed. As shown in Fig. 5 the weights 2B are annulus 2i and in the weights". Coil springs 38 fit intolopenings 31 in the weights 2! and ene 40 gage the channelled annulus 2|. They serve to crating a driven part in diflerent'driving ratios.

an assembly involving a hydraulic power-trans- -mitting means and a speed-responsive clutch.

Other objects will appear from the disclosure. In the drawings: Fig. '1 is a sectional view through the powertransmitting means of the present invention;

provide resilient resistance to outward movement of the weights 26 due to centrifugal action. Balls 38 space the weights 2! from the ring 28. They rest in grooves in the weights 2!. The ring 28 is provided with a side 30 facing the weights 2!, which is slightly inclined to the vertical and is provided with grooves 40 also slightly inclined to the vertical and receiving the balls 38. When the weights 2! move outwardly due to centrifugal action caused by rotation, they cause the balls 38 to move outwardly in the inclined grooves 40 in the ring 2 l.- This brings about an axial shifting of the ring 28 to the right resulting in engagement of the ringwith the clutch facing 28. which amounts to an engagement of the clutch 22 resulting in transmission of drive from the annuli 2| and 23 to the clutch disc 21.

The clutch disc 21 is secured by rivets 4| to a flange 42 of a member 43 splined as indicated at 44 to one end of a sleeve 45. The other end of the sleeve has a radial flange 46 secured as by soldering or welding to an impeller 41. Adjacent the impeller 47 is a runner 48 secured as by soldering or welding to a radial flange 49 on one end of a sleeve 50 fitting within the sleeve 45. The other end of the sleeve carries a gear ring splined thereon as indicated at 52 The gear ring 5| is in mesh with a large gear section 52 of a compound pinion 53, of which there may be one or more spaced about the gear ring 5|. Only one compound pinion 53 is shown in Fig. 1 and it includes a small gear section 54. Pinion 53 is mounted on a shaft 55 ,riveted as indicated at 56 to a ring 51 and riveted as indicated at 58 to a ring 59 having a hub portion 69. A short cylindrical ring 6| provides a bearing of the hub portion 60 upon the ring gear 5|. As seen in Fig. 3, the hub 60 is provided with recesses 62 in which are mounted balls 63 and springs 84. The recesses, balls, and springs constitute a one-way brake that permits rotation of the hub 56 in a clockwise di- I rection, as viewed in Fig. 3, but prevents counterclockwise rotation of the. hub 59 with respect to a member 65 in which the hub is mounted. The member 65 is secured by screws 58 to a stationary housing 61.

Adjacent the runner 48 is a runner 68 secured as by soldering or welding to a hub 69 splined as indicated at 10 on one end of a shaft 1| posi tioned within the sleeve 50. The end of the shaft on which the hub 69 is mounted, is journalled bearing 19 in a short sleeve 80 mounted in the flange IQ of theend member I8. The left end of the sleeve 45 is Joumalled on the sleeve 50 by needle bearings 8| within the sleeve 45. The left end of the sleeve 50 is journalled on the shaft .11 by needle bearings 32 positioned within the sleeve 50 and the right end of the sleeve 50 is journalled on roller bearing 82 carried in the member 65. A seal 83 is positioned between the flange 46 and the bearing 19 and includes a ring 84 having threaded engagement with the sleeve 80. A seal 85 is positioned between the flange 45 and the flange 49, and a seal tween the flange 49 and hub 6 As shown in Fig. 2 there is provided in the sleeve 43 a plurality of recesses 81 in each of which is mounted a ball 88 and a spring 89. These recesses. balls, and springs constitute a one-way clutch between the ring 43 and the channelled annulus 2| and the flange 20 of the end membermitted to-the annuli 2| and 23 and the weights 25. When the speed becomes sufliciently great the 86 is positioned beasoases weights 25 move outwardly against the action of the springs 36 to cause the ring 26. to beshifted into engagement with the clutch facing 28 and the clutch facing 29 to become engaged with the thickened portion of'the annulus 23.. the clutch disc 21 is caused to rotate and the sleeve and the impeller 41 rotate. Fluid contained in the casing i5 is carried about with the impeller 41 and the runner 48 is caused to rotate. The resultant rotation of the sleeve to which the runner 48 is attached causes the ring gear 5| to r0- tate. The compound pinion 52 meshing therewith rotates and transmits that rotation to a gear 90 secured to the shaft H which projects into a transmission casing 9|, as indicated in Fig. 6. As the speed of rotation increases, the fluid in the casing l5 impelled by the impeller 47 reaches the runner 58 and causes it to rotate. The runner 68 acts through the hub 69 to rotate the shaft 1|. When the shaft H is rotated by the runner 68 it drives the compound pinion '53, and the ring 59 carrying the pinion 53 rotates because of the fact that the large gear section 52 tends to move the sleeve 50 at a greater speed than the speed at which the shaft moves. The one-way brake formed of the recesses 62, the ball 63, and the spring 64 permit the necessary clockwise rotation of the ring 59 and its hub 80. It will be understood that the shaft II when driven by the runner 48 through the sleeve 50, the gears BI and 30, and the compound pinion 52, rotates at a lower speed than when driven directly by the runner 63, since the large and small gear sections 52 and 54 of the compound pinion 53 eifect a speed reduction.

When the car in which the previously described structure is mounted, is at a standstill and the engine crankshaft I0 is rotating at idling speed, there is no tendency for the car to creep through the action of the fluid coupling. This is due to the fact that the speed-responsive clutch 22 is so arranged as not to become engaged at an idling speed of the engine crankshaft Ill. Instead the clutch 22 engages at some definitely higher speed. Thus at idling speed the impeller 41 is not rotated and as a consequence, there is no tendency for the runners 48 and 68 to rotate. It will be understood that the speed responsive clutch 22 is of great advantage with a fluid coupling of the type shown involving the runners 48 and 68, the runner 48 driving the shaft ,II at a reduced speed. With the reduction in speed between the runner 48 and the shaft H the tendency to creep would be very great if the speed responsive clutch 22 were not present, since not much force is required to rotate the runner 4B.

As has been previously stated, the sleeve 45 is journalled on the flange l9 of the end member l8 by the roller bearing 19. Since the roller bearing 19 is mounted in the flange l9, the roller bearing is adjacent the channelled annuli 2| and 2-3 of the speed responsive clutch 22. The

clutch disc 21 is connected to the sleeve 45 by the member 43 at a region very near the roller bearing J9. Thus there is present an arrangement in which the driven part of the clutch 22, namely, the disc 21 is "supported by the bearing 19 on the part [9 closely adjacent the driving parts of the clutch 22; namely, the channelled annuli 2| and 23. This arrangement prevents misalignment of the clutch disc 21 and the annuli 2| and 23. v

As has been previously described, the-one-way clutch formed of the recesses 81, the balls 88, and the springs 89 permits the flange 20 of the end member l8 and the annulus 2| to be rotated operation of the sleeve at a greater rate than the casing.

'peller within the casing, a shaft drivingly connected at one end to the second runner, means journaling the second runner within the casing and providing through the second runner support for the said one end of the shaft, a, support, means journaling the other end of the shaft on the support, an inner sleeve surrounding the shaft and connected to the first runner, means journaling the inner sleeve on the shaft at a region ad- .iacent the first runner, means journaling the inner sleeve on the support, means positioned adjacent the support for driving the shaft from the inner sleeve at a speedless than that of the sleeve,

an outer sleeve surrounding the inner sleeve and connected to the impeller, means journaling the outer sleeve on the inner sleeve at a region adjacent the impeller, a speed-responsive clutch for drivingly connecting the casing and the outer sleeve above a predetermined speed of the casin means for journaling the outer sleeve in thecasing adjacent the speed-responsive clutch, a'nd an overrunning clutch for drivingly connecting the casing and the outer sleeve upon operation of the sleeve at a greater rate than the casing,

9. In combination, a driving means, a driven means, a fluid impeller, a speed-responsive clutch connecting the driving means and the fluid impeller, a runner positioned adjacent the fluid impeller for being driven thereby, means drivingly connecting the runner and the driven means, and an overrunning clutch for drivingly connectin the fluid impeller and the driving means upon operation of the fluid impeller at a greater speed than the driving means.

GORDON R. PENNINGTON. 

